Colonna's - even the sign is gone!

Closed last year

Another restaurant in Helotes closed this week.  I don’t know how long Colonna’s Grill was open, but I’d guess less than a year.  Last year the Old Town Grill & Bistro in Old Town Helotes closed.  It was open maybe a year?

I really wanted these restaurants to make it.  I was excited about both of them when they opened.  They were both unique, and by that I mean they were not part of a chain of restaurants.  I would really love for Helotes to get some really good, unique restaurants, or I guess I should say some more good, unique restaurants.  We do have El Chapparal, even though it is no longer unique; there are several of them around now.  And, of course, we have Bobby J’s, Tejas Barbacoa, the Bandera Road Cafe, and Mekong Garden.  OK, maybe I’m just being greedy, but I want more!

In my opinion, both the Old Town Grill and Colonna’s had great potential, and I think that there are plenty of Helotians who would support a good restaurant.  Lots of us eat out on a regular basis, but emphasis should be put on the word ‘good.’  Neither of these restaurants were good (remember this is just my opinion).

The Old Town Grill had an interesting concept.  I liked the way the restaurant looked.  Having wine was a good idea.  The idea of serving fresh breads and muffins was also a good one.  However, the service was horrible (we waited one time for 45 minutes just to get a glass of tea).  Some of the food was really good; some of it not so good.  The breads and muffins were dry and not real tasty.  We went numerous times hoping it would improve, but it never happened.

To Colonna’s, we only went twice.  The first time the only thing on the menu that they actually had was pizza.  They were not organized.  They were slow.  My husband never did get the dressing for his salad.  A table of 10 next to us got up and left after 45 minutes when all they had gotten was their tea.

Not a fun experience, but they were new so we thought we’d give them a second chance.  When we went a second time, we were with friends who wanted to buy a bottle of wine.  They were out of wine.  Another friend of mine went once, and they were out of salad.  They were not accommodating.  They were rude to customers.  They were not organized.  However, the cook (Mr. Colonna) did inform us that he had had restaurants for years, he had a loyal following, we didn’t know anything about the restaurant business, and he knew what he was doing.

I hoped that our experiences were unique, but I heard many people complain about Colonna’s saying they would not go back.  Now they’re closed.

I hope this will not become a pattern here in Helotes.  We deserve some more good restaurants, some unique restaurants, ones that will draw people to Helotes to eat, enjoy themselves, and spend lots of money.

Hey, it’s just my opinion!!   What’s yours?